Scotland offers loans to plastics recyclers

EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND (Sept. 17, 8:35 a.m. ET) — The Scottish government has established a $4.05 million loan scheme to help support plastics recyclers. The fund will be administered by Zero Waste Scotland and Scottish Enterprise.

The scheme, which builds on recent studies to identify viable business opportunities to boost plastics recycling in Scotland, will support a range of projects from plastic bottles and rigid plastics, such as yogurt pots, to those that have traditionally been more difficult to recycle, including plastic films, PVC window and door frames and plastics from waste electrical equipment.

Scotland’s environment secretary, Richard Lochhead, said: “With 280 million bottles collected for recycling a year, Scotland is already making progress in realizing the value of waste plastic. Zero Waste Scotland’s research highlights how there is potential for businesses to recycle more and different varieties of plastic. The loan fund has been set up to support businesses to take these types of ventures forward.

“It is part of our drive to maximize the economic and employment benefits of recycling resources again and again, establishing a more circular economy in Scotland.”

Scotland generated around 500,000 metric tons of waste plastic last year, according to government figures. Only around one-fifth of this was able to be recycled and most of this was sent to facilities in England or overseas.

Expanding the country’s capacity to recycle plastic could create hundreds of new jobs, boost Scotland’s economy, and help to meet the Scottish Government’s target to recycle 70 percent of all waste by 2025.